A big topic amongst vintage collectors and drum restorers is
why many of the major drum companies painted the interiors of
their drum shells. One of the biggest question is if they did
it for the sound. My opinion is it was never a sound issue but
a way to cut corners. Basically it would take less time to make
the interior as nice as the exterior and also it was a way to
cover up imperfections in the ply material. This saved time and
money and allowed them to build drums faster.
So, can we now say that the interior of a drum is affected by
the interior finish? I would say yes, but the sound to most ears
is probably not that noticeable.
So, the question to a vintage historian and a vintage collector
is will the drum value change if they repaint the interiors of
vintage drums. The answer of course is multi faceted, but in general
as soon as you alter an original vintage drum then it lowers the
value.
So when is it a OK? Well, the debate has raged on in many forums
and there are two sides that will fight this until the sun goes
down, but if you have a set of drums, they are your drums and
you can do whatever you want to do to them.
So, if they are really beat up, been altered, painted over or
if you are taking orphan drum shells and trying to make a complete
matching kit then it is time to start painting! The next thing
to figure out is what paint to use for the drums you have.
| Ludwig White Interiors
- Benjamin
Moore Aqua Glo White |
 |
| Just to make it very clear, with Ludwig drums there
are transition shells that might not fit these dates with
a different ply make-up. Also, on drums with wood finished
exteriors that were lacquered then the exterior ply would
normally be maple. This is not an exact science and the cross
over drums between changes add a twist to the history of Ludwig.
|
| Ludwig Shells |
Basic shell information 3-Ply Shells |
Shell Material |
Interior |
| 1960 |
|
Mahogany/Poplar/Mahogany |
Clear Lacquer |
| 1961-1967? |
|
|
White Paint |
| 1968 |
Switched to clear interiors and also the baseball bat mufflers |
Maple/Poplar/Maple |
Clear Interior |
| 1976 |
3ply shells switched to 6 ply shells some time in 1976-77 |
|
|
| Ludwig Date Stamps |
| Date stamping started around 1956 with larger numbers and
letters in red ink, then in 1961-1962 stampings were still
red, but with slightly smaller characters. In 1963 shells
can be found with red or black ink stamps. (Rob
Cook) |
| Gretsch Silver Interiors
- Galvanized
Fence Paint |
|
| Just like Ludwig, Gretsch had transition times when
shells are used up or sealer was added. So there are exceptions
to the below timeline. This is not an exact science and the
dates can be challenged by these anomalies. |
| Gretsch Shells |
Basic shell information |
Shell Material |
Interior |
| Pre Mid 50's |
3-ply shells |
|
Clear |
| 1957, 58 - ? |
Jaspar Shells 6-ply |
|
Silver Sealer |
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| Gretsch Paper Tags |
| There has been a lot of discussion about this and some contradicting
information. But the general consencus is that the paper tags
started some time around 1962 or 1963. |
Slingerland
Tan Interiors -
It was generally
sprayed on, with thickness varying quite a bit from so thin
as to be barely noticeable to so thick as to be completely
opaque. Due to this thickness variation the appearance and
shading of weak chocolate varied also. DrCJW |
Muralo Paint - High Satin color created from
original drum - pre-mixed - $20 quart.
Email for Info |
We already have an extensive history section about the
shells and ply-configuration on Slingerland Drums by DrCJW...
All of this info comes from the forum and post by DrCJW..
The tan interiors were from 1966-1970. Click here to visit
the Slingerland
History Section.
|
| Slingerland Stamps |
| Slingerland used standard off-the-shelf rubber date stamps.
This particular one, still available today, has rubber wheels
with selectable date in month-day-year format, such as JUN
15 1966. The day wheels both contain an X character. If the
guy in the shell room decided to include the day in the stamp,
he did. If he didn't care about the day, he might just use
the X. Or he might use the dash -, which is also standard
on the wheel, and which we also often see on 60's Slingerland
shell interiors. Taken from DrCJW post on vintagedrumforum.com |
Rogers
Gray -
Krylon flat gray primer |
Flat Gray Primer #13-18 |
Rogers
Granitone Interiors - Zolatone
Info from Marley
|
|
Silver Gray 20-72 |
| Web Site |
Rogers Granitone
Interiors - Trunk
Spray
Info from TommyP
|
|
Gray - White |
| Web
Site |
| Gretsch Shells |
Basic shell information |
Shell Material |
Interior |
|
